The Bakery Boy
by elcapitan-rogers
Summary: Natasha was tasked with the hardest job on Earth, handling Tony Stark and Pepper Potts' wedding. After Tony acted like a diva and their patisserie kicked his ass out of his bakery, Natasha had to find a new one and it led her to Brooklyn and someone she wasn't expected...
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

"This is worse than I thought," Natasha said as she sunk down into the couch inside Pepper Potts' office.

Pepper Potts was the CEO of Stark Industries and fiancee of Tony Stark. She was a tall and beautiful woman with strawberry blonde hair. She had dated Tony for three years before he popped the question while they were on a vacation in St. Tropez during Christmas last year. Natasha saw this one coming though even Tony was a notorious playboy who changed his lover every other week. But with Pepper, he was like a devoted little puppy dog and she was the only person in Tony's life who could keep Tony in check.

Pepper Potts first got her job as Tony Stark's secretary but her degrees in Business Management and her brilliant ideas for business opportunities proved that she was worth more than her position as a secretary. She was the one Tony sought advice from and he trusted her judgment more than anyone else's. As she rose in rank, she quickly earned Tony's heart.

Once Pepper had reached the position of Marketing Director, she introduced Natasha to Tony, who quickly offered her a job at Stark Industries as a member of the legal team. It helped that Natasha was also Pepper's best friend.

Natasha Romanoff, the beautiful redhead with stunning green eyes, was Pepper Potts roommate while she was in college. She had been working for four years now and witnessed the love of this power couple. She immediately said yes when Pepper asked her to be the maid of honor.

The 'Yes' that brought Natasha to this position, to this very moment, the very rollercoaster moment of her life.

"Believe me, Tony can be a real diva," Pepper said as she got up from her chair to sit with her friend.

"He turned down another bakery," the redhead shook her head. "I don't think I can find another good bakery that has enough patience for Tony Stark."

"Well, on the bright side, we have six more months to find the right bakery for him and this time, I will have a final word," Pepper promised.

"I can't believe that you're gonna marry this guy." Nat joked.

"Yeah, me neither,"

They laughed together at that but they both knew why. Pepper and Tony had been through alot together. From one crisis to another, they stood by each other's side. From Obadiah Stane's betrayal, the one that crippled the whole company, to Ivan Vanko's crisis, the personal vendetta from the rival family, to Aldrich Killian's vengeance. Pepper stood by his side and gave him support and guidance when someone else turned their back on him. Tony was hopelessly falling in love with her.

"You will be fine, Pepper. He loves you so much."

"I know." Pepper smiled fondly when she thought about her fiancé. "Anyway, how are you going to find a new bakery?"

"I will find something," Nat replied. "Maria will drop by later to help me with that. She just came back from Paris last night."

"When was the last time we had a full table like this?"

"About two months? Maria has been in Europe for her photoshoot the whole time."

Maria Hill was a supermodel. They met during college and she lived next door in the dormitory. She was a beautiful brunette with a tall, lean body and a stunning blue eyes. A model agency discovered her during sophomore year and landing her on Teen Vogue since her first audition. Even she had a career on the rise, Maria insisted on getting her degree in Fashion design.

Her work required her to travel a lot but when she heard about the wedding, she cleared the schedule for her best friend so that she could have two weeks off to stay in New York with her friends each month and help out with the wedding. Unfortunately, her last project had pulled her away from the wedding, (well, she couldn't say no when it came to joining Anna Wintour on the September issue). Between the outfitting and photoshoot, it had taken her two months to finish up in Paris.

"I'm glad that you finally have back up. I know it's been a rough month helping me and Tony and he doesn't make it easy for you either."

"But at least I haven't killed him yet."

* * *

The one question that Natasha needed to ask herself many times a day was how she had ended up in charge of almost everything? Pepper Potts was a very busy human being. As such, Pepper needed someone to help coordinate with the wedding organizer, (the best that money could buy). Someone who knew what her and Tony wanted and someone who she trusted to make the right decisions for them. Natasha Romanoff was the only suitable person in this world. If Pepper had been too busy running the Stark empire and making sure that nothing went wrong, (especially Tony)

The wedding planner provided the list of things to do. The couple would have a wedding the following June. The first thing they did was to scout for a venue. Since money was never a problem, Natasha narrowed down the list of three places and have the couple make the final decision. Of course, Pepper picked the Plaza but Tony insisted on having his Hampton mansion as a backup.

Pepper deliberately used her power and position to transfer Nat's work to someone else unless the matter was really urgent so Natasha could pay full attention on the wedding. Booking the officiant was the second thing on the list. Pepper flew them back to her hometown to meet with the priest from the church in the neighborhood where she grew up. Tony said he could have the mayor of New York City officiated their wedding and made it less traditional.

"I'm not nostalgic, you know," he said and Nat smacked his head.

"It's her wedding. She gets what she wants," the redhead hissed.

"The last time I checked, it was our wedding."

"It would make it more meaningful and memorable if you had someone that actually knows you officiate. Not just your golf buddy."

Tony whined because he didn't get what he wanted. As a compromise, he said that he would be the only one who could have a say when it came to food and beverage. Pepper just agreed to make him stop whining.

Pepper was very strict about the number of guests so she took this matter into her hands because, one, she didn't want a crowded wedding, (so only family and their closest friends allowed). Second, Tony had a tendency to invite everyone that he knew to the wedding just to stroke his ego. She worked out the list with Nat and it was finalized only two weeks after the planning had started. A hundred guests wouldn't be too hard for Natasha to handle as far as the hotel booking and transportation.

Nat booked four floors of the Four Seasons for the out-of-town guests, each with a full service package. She made sure to charter private jets. But some of them made it hard for her because they had their own specific requests. Luckily, Pepper approved of everything anyway.

Then she threw the engagement party for them. This time Tony insisted that he be in charge of the guest list. Natasha instantly regretted her decision of letting him do just that. As it turned out, she lost all power and Tony threw the wildest party, (and when she said 'wildest', she meant the 'craziest, out of control' kind of party). Pepper didn't blame her but she needed to shut down the party and send everyone home before her fiancé made a fool of himself.

He was grounded for a week. Tony stayed cooped up in his workshop the entire time in order to make it up to Pepper.

The next morning, Pepper granted her full power in deciding anything for their wedding, never letting Tony make a decision without her again.

"He is kinda out of control lately," Pepper said. "It was like his body was fighting for the last bit of freedom, as if he was trying to live the last bit of his bachelorhood to the fullest."

"He better come to his senses soon," Nat warned. "Or I will shoot him for real."

"He's like a puppy dog but sometime he is absolute chaos."

"He's a good man and he treats you right. He loves you. That's make me okay with all of this."

After that, Natasha spent a week doing detailed research on photographers, bands, florists and caterers. She came up with a list everything, each item containing both the first suitable choice as well as various backups just in case. She told the couple to go with her in order to interview and check each caterers/florist/baker/photographers themselves.

The hard part was that Natasha had to find the perfect date for when both of them were free. Another hard part was getting Tony out of his work shop. He was so wired in, blaring AC/DC that he didn't hear the intercom.

"Tony, one day you will be deaf," Pepper said as she walked into the workshop and found her soon-to-be husband covered in grease and working on his vintage Ferrari.

"Hello, Dear," Tony greeted as he slid himself off from under the car. "I thought you had a meeting with the board today."  
"That was yesterday. Today we have a meeting with the caterers, florists and photographers."  
"Shit! I forgot. What day is today again?"  
"It's Wednesday," Natasha replied. "How long have you been here anyway?"  
Tony thought and did the math in his mind before answering. "Hmm...when was the last time Pep came home?"  
"Monday"  
"So it's been a day and a half."  
"And I want to remind both of you right now of the schedule I've made for you guys. We are going on interviews every day from now until Sunday, when we are meeting the baker."  
"Yes, mom."

It was surprisingly easier than Nat thought, (probably because Pepper was there to help make decisions.) Tony behaved and didn't challenge Natasha at every turn. They found the florists, who had enough resources to handle both the wedding of the year and Tony Stark's demands. On Thursday, they signed the contract and booked the famous photographer and his team that would handle everything related to photo and video.

The hardest one was the catering company. Tony said that, to honor his wife-to-be, he needed Michelin-starred chef to do the catering for them. Gordon Ramsey was Nat's first choice because he was a friend of the bride and groom but his schedule was conflicted with the wedding day. Nat took them to meet with another three New York based, Michelin-starred chefs and they settled on the last one interviewed, after he agreed to design new and unique dishes just for the wedding that would not be made anywhere else ever again.

Pepper and Tony were a bit picky about the baker. Tony had a very specific tastes for every desert and he wanted a giant freaking wedding cake. That narrowed down most bakeries in New York because most of them couldn't meet Tony Stark's demands. Pepper had one issue with the desserts because she was allergic to strawberries. Tony wanted gluten-free food while Pepper wanted full-on dairy. So Natasha had to meet them halfway by finding bakers who could make both. They found another Michelin star patisserie in no time with the promise that the wedding cake would look fantastic.

Natasha secured OneRepublic to perform at the reception. They were Nat's favorite artists and Pepper agreed that they were the most suitable choices. (Pepper secretly wanted Adele to perform at her wedding but it was impossible due as the artist was on a very, very, very tight schedule.)

On the first week of second month, (and still 8 months until the wedding), Tony Stark surprised Natasha by coming to her office to say that he wanted to meet with the baker again to discuss the details of wedding cake and all the desserts. He wanted to taste them first but he also wanted to make sure that they used the right ingredients that he specified for them.

Nat rolled her eyes at him. "We can wait until three months before the wedding, Tony."

"Dear, This is the biggest wedding of the year so yeah, we should pick the freaking cake right now." Tony said, shrugging as if it was not a big deal. "You need to come with me right now."

"Stark, you are aware that I have a job to do too. A job at your company."

"Eh, technically and legally, it's Pepper's now. She told me that I have you at my disposal for anything related to the wedding."

"No, she did not say that."

"But she insinuated that."

"Can I at least finalize this legal document?"

"You have thirty minutes because we have an appointment with Chef Rousseau."

"Unbelievable," Nat grunted before getting back to work.

She called a paralegal to help her with the document and got it done in twenty minutes. Tony actually squealed when she told they could head out. She didn't understand this man sometime. He could be all cool but at the same time, he could be a child.

Once they were at the bakery, Tony told the chef to present him with dessert, warning that they better not use anything other than Tahitian vanilla and that all dairy from Switzerland or Denmark only.

"Why do you have to be like this?" Nat asked. "Just let the chef do his job."

"It's my wedding and I get what I want," He replied. "You told me to select and order the cake and Pep made a deal with me to handle food and beverage with you."

"She also told you not to act like a total diva."

"Whatever...if he can't do as I say, we will find a new baker to make wedding cake."

"God damn it!"

This is where everything went from normal to hell faster than she thought possible. Tony acted like a total diva and the head of patisserie chef kicked them both out of his shop right away. Even that he was Tony Stark, it didn't stop the chef. He said that if they didn't do it his way, Tony could find the new dessert caterers for his wedding and that Tahitian vanilla was overrated.

"Everyone in this world knows that Madagascan vanilla is the best vanilla, Mr. Stark," Chef Rousseau said. "I will not change my main ingredients because I do not want them to effect the taste of my desserts."

Even though the chef gave him decent reasons, Tony did not back down his demands. Now it was up to Nat to find a new dessert caterer for them. Pepper wasn't pleased with this news but she didn't have time to talk to her fiance just yet.

Tony didn't stop his dramatic action even when she found four more patisseries for him. They declined him after he acted like a total diva. and Natasha ran out of suitable options.

She knew she had six months but this was Tony Stark and Pepper Potts' wedding. Her best friends in the whole world's wedding.

She didn't want to let them down.

* * *

Other than handling with the biggest wedding of the year, Natasha's life was still pretty hectic even after Pepper had directed most of her work to other people. Since she was a senior legal counsel at Stark Industries, her presence was required for many important decisions. She was one of the very few people that could actually intimidate someone just by a deadly stare and she made the right decisions most of the time. Tony and Pepper loved having her by their side when they had a meeting with people who wanted to do business with them.

Even so,her daily life felt pretty mundane. She was still just an ordinary office worker, just with very high-powered friends. People in her circle consisted of high ranking CEOs, politicians, celebrities, and highly influential people. (Of course, working with Tony and Pepper opened the doors to many things that she could only have fantasized when she was in college.)

Even with her career was on the rise, her love life wasn't that great. She spent most of her time on her work and when she had personal time, she used it for herself. She tried to go on dates but hadn't found anyone who she thought she had chemistry with. The last actual boyfriend (before she met that one Tony's friend who broke her heart.) she had was when she was in college. His name was Alexei and they studied Law together. Everything went well until Natasha realized that they were too much alike. She sensed that he had been about to do something big (AKA a shiny rock on a ring and bending down on one knee thing). She broke it off before it was too late- she hadn't been ready for that level of commitment.

She thought it was a good decision. Otherwise, she would have two kids by now and she would have closed the door to every great thing that she had. She had loved Alexei but she wasn't ready and it wouldn't have been right if she had strung him along. It wasn't fair and Natasha Romanoff wasn't a selfish bitch.

One of many good things that came along in her life was when she finally found someone she had wanted to spend the rest of her life with. Tony Stark introduced her to one of his friends. There was a bit mistrust and misunderstanding at first, (he thought she was manipulating him the way all the lawyer do.) But as they started to get to know each other, they learned more and it slowly cemented their trust and, eventually, love. They spent times with each other after work or sometimes, if he was free, he would sit in her office and keep her company. They had been dating for two years and everything was perfect. Nat thought that she was mature enough to finally settle down with the man she loved.

Karma was a bitch though. She sometimes sensed that her past would come back to haunt her in some way, that the thing she had done to Alexei would bite her in the ass. They got engaged at Christmas when they spent time together in Aspen but a week later, after they had returned to New York, he received an invitation to join a group of scientists and doctors in a 'Borderless doctors' campaign. He would be part of the team working to invent a medicine to help stop the disease and epidemic in Africa. The opportunity had been one of his lifelong goals and he wasn't reluctant to say no.

Natasha was heartbroken when he broke off the engagement with her, even though she knew he meant well. He was a kind soul who had always wanted to help people, to do things for greater good. But what about her? What about the woman that he claimed to love with all his heart and soul? Even with all of those reasons to blame him, she couldn't really blame him because what he did was the good thing to do.

Pepper took her on a trip after she learned about the news. The girls spent two weeks on Stark's private island with no cellphones allowed. (Tony was about to go crazy because his girlfriend went AWOL, leaving him no messages or contact information. He wanted to join them but Pepper said that it was a girl time.) Nat spent the first three days cooped up in bed, crying her eyes out.

She felt a bit better after that but occasionally, she will feel bitter about the whole thing, questioning her worth and feeling bad afterwards. This usually ended with a bottle of vodka in her hand. It took her three months to get over it and stop feeling humiliated that the engagement had fallen apart.

The most important person beside Pepper and Tony that helped her cope with the heartbreak was her best friend, Clint Barton. She and Clint had known each other their entire lives. They grew up together, living next door to each other in the suburbs of Staten Island. Clint was a big part of her life in every way. People always saw them together and often mistook them for being in a romantic relationship with one another. No, they were like siblings. She witnessed Clint and his countless girlfriends and it scared her sometimes.

Clint owned a pizza house he ran with his wife, Bobbi Morse. They lived a very normal life, one that Natasha couldn't find with the type of work she had and the people she met everyday day. She envied her friend but she still had hope that one day she would find someone who wanted to spend the rest of his life with her.

So there she was, living alone in her loft on the Upper East Side with her black cat, Liho. Every night, she came home alone after a long day at work. Liho will be at the front door to greet her with it small purr and she will pick it up and nuzzle affectionately. She found Liho outside her balcony one night. She was sitting there, sipping wine and soaking in Marvin Gaye songs. The cat came to her and rubbed its body against her legs. Nat poured a bowl of milk for it and ever since then, it had never left. After the bad break up, Nat knew she needed someone or something to keep her company. She guessed in her case, Liho was just the thing she needed.

Clint and Tony dubbed her as the old, lonely lady with a cat. Nat didn't care at all.

When Pepper asked her to help with the wedding, Nat thought it would be the perfect distraction for her to take her mind of her lost love and how lonely she was.

She had to put everything on hold for two weeks because of a legal crisis with Roxxon Industries. Pepper needed all hands on deck. Once the crisis was averted, she resumed her task of finding the new baker while also handling other wedding issues. Nat found another bakery next two weeks with the help of Maria Hill.

Natasha was googling for the bakery when Maria suddenly showed up at her office. She was desperate because Tony was really giving her a hard time.

"Hey, girl! Whatcha doing?" Maria greeted and sunk down on the couch.

"Researching another bakery for Tony and Pepper's wedding," Nat replied.

"Yeah, I heard that. Tony's a total diva."

"And it's up to me to save their wedding."

"Don't be too hard on yourself. Besides, you still have six months left."

Nat snickered. She wasn't sure that six months was enough for her if Tony kept stepping up his game like this.

"I can help you with that," Maria offered. "I met this guy in Brooklyn. He worked at this bakery that makes the most delicious cupcakes I've ever eaten in my entire life."

"You came home for three days and already hooked up with someone?"  
"Okay, mom. It's the new age now. Besides, I'm a big girl."  
"Who's the guy?" Nat pressed on. "Tell me all about it."

"I won't tell you but I have the name of the shop. You can give it a try if you want, I can guarantee that it's totally worth it."

"And why are you even going to Brooklyn in the first place?"  
"Nat, drop it. It's just sex."

"Are you sure that this bakery can handle Tony?"

"God, Natasha Romanoff. When I say that it's good, it's good. My stamp of approval is something you can trust." But Natasha wasn't quite convinced with this so Maria yelled at her. "THE CUPCAKES,. OH MY GOD, NATASHA THEY ARE BETTER THAN THE BEST SEX I'VE EVER HAD AND I'VE HAD A LOT OF SEX!"

"FINE!" Nat yelled back. "I will check it out."  
"We should visit that bakery on Friday. What do you think?" Maria asked.  
"Yeah, but probably in the afternoon. I have a meeting with Tony in the morning." Nat said. "It's really hard to close this deal with the Chinese and finalized the legal documents."  
"I get you, girl." Maria said. "Let's do it this way. Let's order some of their desserts to be delivered here for a taste so you didn't have to waste your time. If you like them, you can go there to meet the baker."

"That's a brilliant idea."

Maria gave her the name and Natasha did research that night while Liho was curled up in her laps, purring to get her attention. The next morning, she called when the bakery open and ordered one sample of everything they had on the menu for the day.

The delivery guy was a tall handsome man with long black hair and dark brown eyes. He was attractive and she wondered if he was the guy that Maria had hooked up with the other night.

"Hello, are you Natasha Romanoff?"

"Yes."

"This is your delivery."  
"Thank you, put it over there."

Nat got up from her seat and opened the box to start tasting immediately. The first bite took her by surprise. The rich flavour and creaminess were the right proportion and everything was perfect. If this wasn't the best cake she had ever tasted, she didn't know how something would ever compare.

"How was it?" The delivery guy asked.

"It's great. This is what I'm looking for," Nat replied. "Do you guys do catering for weddings?"

"Yeah, we do but you should taste everything first before making a decision. We're not going anywhere."

"Okay, I will contact you guys again."

The delivery guy left with a generous tip from Nat. She immediately called Pepper to get Tony and blindfolded him before he got inside her office because she had a surprise for him. Tony whined at her and told her that if it was something bad, he would fire her.

"That's not your decision." She retorted. "Now, let's get to the point. I have something for both of you to taste and I think that this bakery is the one that we are looking for."

"Hmmm?" Tony was curious. "But what if it's not?"

"Then we find ourselves another bakery. Maybe you should consider getting married in LA because you haven't turned down any bakeries there yet."

"Sarcasm is your forte, isn't it, Red?" Tony quipped. "Are you sure that this one can satisfy my palate, Red?"  
"Hopefully yes because if you're not, I will have to quit from this."  
"I know you won't quit."  
"Yeah, because Pepper is my the best friend in the whole world and I would hate to let her down," Nat was now furious at him. "You're lucky I don't have a gun with me."

"You will not let me down, Nat. You've done a lot for us already. We are the ones who should be thankful for your help." 

Pepper hit Tony's forearm to make him stop. Then they began with the tasting. Pepper tasted everything and she loved every single bite while Nat fed Tony, who was blindfolded. He said yes because the flavour was right. He really liked the texture of the chocolate mousse and the whipped cream that they used.

"It's good that both of you like this one." Nat said. "We will meet them on Friday."

"Don't make an appointment," Tony told her. "We should surprise them to see how well they can handle us." 

* * *

Friday came and Nat met up with Tony and Pepper at their penthouse. Tony was late because he forgot the time and Nat tried not to lash out at him because she was afraid that he might change his mind about the bakery.

Pepper had to drag Tony out of the shower so that they could finally head out to Brooklyn. Happy Hogan, the Starks' driver, drove them to this bakery shop in Brooklyn. The shop was small and cozy and there was no one inside at the moment. Natasha opened the door and the bell sounded, signaling that there were visitors.

An extremely attractive blond looked up from the cake he was frosting and gave her a sparkling smile. His blue eyes shone bright in the warm light. Nat froze on the spot.

"Welcome to Rogers Patisserie, ma'am."


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Steve Rogers' life was pretty simple and peaceful. He worked with his mom in their small bakery shop in Brooklyn. Even their shop was small, it was very well known to the locals in the area. Sarah Rogers, his mother, had worked in this place her entire life and you could say that this place was the legacy of their family. His mother's side of the family had established it over a hundred years before.

Steve's entire life was in New York. He grew up in the neighborhood with his two best friends, Bucky Barnes and Sam Wilson. They had gone to the same school, forming a tight group, protecting everyone from bullies and eventually becoming everyone's favorite boys for both students and teachers. They were popular not only because of what they did to protect other people but also because of their positions on the football team. Steve was the tight end and the team captain, Bucky was the wide receiver, and Sam was the running back. (Steve had lost the quarterback position to Brock Rumlow- the coach said the his speed, agility, and body size were better for the tight end position.)

Steve really didn't mind what position he ended up with because Bucky and Sam were the ones who had convinced him to join the team in the first place, (he'd said that he wanted to join the art club more than sport teams).

The boys helped Sarah at the bakery shop after school and also during the weekend. Bucky was the delivery boy and packing master. (Bucky would have loved to help in the kitchen but he tended to burn or set most things on fire). Sam also worked as a delivery boy but he had learned how to make bread and was really good at it. He created a special bread for each day called "The Wilson Special", which was so good that each day, a line formed outside every morning.

Steve had followed his mother's footsteps since he was just a little boy. He grew up seeing her working happily in this place. Sarah taught him how everything in the kitchen worked as well as how to make every dessert known to man. By junior high, Steve had mastered most things and he'd been given the chance to use his creative skills in the cake frosting and decorating process. By high school, Steve was helping his mother handle almost everything.

Steve's creativity also brought recognition to the bakery, even winning a competition. Local people of Brooklyn came to their shop and asked the Rogers' to make their wedding cakes. The boys were smart, building connections in catering and wedding planning business.

Sam and Bucky also helped bring the bakery to the social media world. Bucky was the technical expert and Sam was very creative with wording. Steve, on the other hand, only had a Facebook account (which he rarely used), and an Instagram account (which he'd created when he was dating Sharon, the woman who was a regular and she lived a couple blocks away). He focused his photography skills and artistry on creating lovely graphics that attracted people to their shop.

Since the engagement and awareness on social media with younger people increased, new faces showed up at their door and mostly were girls. Bucky deliberately posted pictures of the boys on the bakery's Facebook page, (and mostly photos of Steve). They gained a lot of attention and were dubbed "The hottest bakery boys of Brooklyn".

"I'm not sure how this will help," Steve said, in total disagreement when Bucky posted the picture of Steve shirtless.  
"Of course it will help us," Bucky insisted. "You don't notice how female customers have increased since I posted the picture of us three?"  
"Hell, I noticed it. It's getting awkward every time they come in and try to have a conversation with me," Steve frowned. "I want people to notice my works and the taste of my cake, not my body or my face."  
"Yeah, but you are the thing that draws people in to taste the cake." Sam countered.

Steve knew he couldn't do anything when his best friends tagged team like this. He guessed he just had to suck it up and accept the fact that this helped bring more customers to the shop and it made his mother happy.

The mother that paid for his tuition through college. He just wanted more income so that they could live a little more comfortable.

Yes, Steve had graduated from a university, and not just any university. He got his bachelor degree of Visual Arts from Columbia University, (alongside Sam, who'd studied Public Health, and Bucky, who'd studied Engineering). The three boys had entered on athletic scholarships and as Columbia Lions, they'd played the same positions as in high school. They quickly became the most feared three in the offensive line.

Even they though they'd been busy in college as football superstars, Steve, Sam, and Bucky were still helping Sarah at the bakery. Each boy had decided to stay at home instead of living in a dormitory, (Bucky stayed with his mother and younger sister while Sam lived with his parents).

They all had a bright future ahead of them but Steve chose to help his mother instead of the big time job he was offered as a graphic designer by the mets. It didn't make any sense. Steve knew that but all that he cared was his mother and if he accepted the job offer, he would have to stay in Manhattan. He didn't want leave his mother alone to take care of the shop.

"You don't have to worry about me, Steve," Sarah said. "I can run this bakery by myself I can hire more help."

"Don't worry, ma. I really want help you run this place. It's my home," Steve replied while hugging his mother. "I guess it runs in our blood."

Sarah laughed. She knew what her son meant by that. Sarah had graduated from nursing school but being a pastry chef did run too deep in their blood. Sarah joined Steve's grandfather right after she graduated from the college. Steve followed his mother footsteps even though she insisted that she could hire someone else to help her.

"Who knows about this bakery and its customers more than us?" Steve said.

Bucky worked as an engineer in a clothes factory in Brooklyn for a year before he could no longer work their anymore. During one of his night shifts, Bucky was helping one of the factory workers in a machinery accident at the cost of his own arm. His left arm was crushed by the machine the doctors said that they had to amputate his arm before the infection from his wound spread. His bones also got crushed into pieces.

Lucky for the family, the factory covered the expense and got a prosthetic arm for him. Steve and Sam stayed by Bucky's side all the time that he recovered and physical therapy.

Since Bucky could no longer work in the factory, Sarah told him to come and work with the Rogers', (the delivery boy had just quit). Bucky said yes without any hesitation.

"Thank you, mom," Bucky said, hugging her tightly, (he and Sam had always called Sarah 'mom'). They were like one big family from the start anyway.

"There's always a place for you here, my Bucky," Sarah said fondly and kissed her boy on his cheek. "Besides, I need someone to help keep eyes on Steve."

"Mom…" Steve groaned from the frosting station. "I'm the one who has to keep my eyes on him."

"Punk, need I remind you that you're the chivalrous one who gets into a fight every time a drunk guy in a bar disrespects girls."

"Need I remind you that you were right alongside me," Steve smirked.

"Hold on, I'm actually the one who has to pull both of you out of trouble," Sam chimed in.

"All I have to say is that I'm tired of bailing your asses out of jail."

Sarah cut them off. "Luckily, Captain Holt loves the cake we make. I have to send boxes of desserts for his entire precinct everytime you all got in trouble."

They laughed. That had happened when they were teens and hot headed. Luckily, the entire precinct knew that they only got into fights only to protect someone from bullies and defend girls' honor.

Sam joined the three of them after Bucky. As it turned out, even after graduating with a degree in Public Health from one of the top universities, it was really hard to find a job. Sam tried for a year and half and took part-time jobs while he searched for a job before he gave up. Of course, Sarah opened her arms and took another son back home. Sam's parents were even happier than Sarah because he'd finally taken a job at Sarah's bakery.

"If you wasn't so stubborn, Sammy, you wouldn't waste your time like that," Darlene Wilson said to her son.  
"Ma, I just want to put my degree to good use," Sam replied. "But it's great to be back here. I'm home again."

That was how the "three amigos" reunited and worked together at the bakery. They ruled the five blocks radius together and everyone loved their baked goods. The bakery was two units of 4-floor brownstone buildings in Brooklyn Heights area, (the Rogers family had owned these two units since the completion of the Brooklyn Bridge.) Steve and Sarah lived on the third and fourth floor.

Everyday, Steve would start his day early at around 4 am along with his mother, preparing the day's bakery products. Bucky and Steve would sanitize the kitchen area while Sam and Sarah prepared the dough to make the bread, buns and other baked goods.

It was a mundane task to do everyday but it was what they did for a living. Cleaned the baking bins and completed an inventory of the goods they needed to bake. That was when the fun happened. They could begin to mix the ingredients needed for the products. The baking began at 7 AM. Sam also prepared his 'Wilson's special' breads and baking goods.

The bakery staff (a popular part time job for teenagers in that area.) came to the bakery at 8 AM and helped prepare the display and set up the table, line of queuing, and packing the advance orders for today. The bakery opened at 9 am and Bucky will began the deliveries. Sam put up a sign with how many "Wilson's specials" would be available on that day. There was always a line waiting to buy freshly baked goods or to enjoy breakfast, (they served food that mostly contain breads with coffee or chocolate).

While the breakfast goods were sold, Steve began to make pastries, cakes, and desserts. Customers visited the shop all day but the prime time was lunch and afternoon. Some days, Steve showed off his frosting skills. It was a show that everyone, including customers watched every time in awe.

They closed the shop early, around 4 pm due to the popularity and amounts of people visited their shop. Some days, they would stay open until 5 pm. After the shop closed, they prepared everything for the next day. The cycle repeated itself every day. The boys took turns having day off once or twice a week.

After all the work was done and shop was closed, the boys went to the gym together, where they made friends with great guys and formed a group of mixed martial arts fanatics called "The Howling Commandos". Sometimes they entered competitions against rival gyms to earn more money. Steve and Bucky were their best but Timothy 'Dum Dum' Dugan was the tank and not so easy to take down.

After a good work out, the gang hit their regular bar, just a block away from their home called "The Highlanders", where Bucky and Sam always scored a girls while Steve watched his friends having fun. Girls always expressed their interest in him but he turned them down. You could say that he was a old-fashioned guy who would have preferred a long-term relationship instead of a one-night stand.

He was looking for the right partner and he willing to wait for someone who really took his breath away.

* * *

Steve really didn't mind people calling him "mama's boy" or anything related to a guy who still lived with his mother. They didn't have even half of the story. He wanted to take care of his mother because she was the only family that he'd had since he could remember.

His father hadn't been present since he was born. Joseph was an alcoholic and Steve didn't bother to even remember his last name. He'd left his mother after he found out that she was pregnant, without leaving her anything to raise their child. Lucky for both of them, her family still welcomed her despite the shenanigans with Joseph. They had a cute baby boy who took their last name breaking any ties that could link the boy to Joseph. Steve was okay with it as he grew up. He didn't have any need to know who his father was or why he used 'Rogers' instead of his father's family name.

All that he knew was that his father was a sperm donor to him.

He grew up with a single mother and he saw how hard it was for her to raise him by herself. Steve tried his best to make it easier for his mom by helping her with anything that he could. He also never missed the look on his mother's face when she saw a whole family came in, the family that they should have had if Joseph hadn't bailed on them. And he also never missed the way his mother tried to hide in her room when she cried during the middle of the night.

He hated his father for doing this to her, for causing so much pain in someone so loving and caring.

Steve vowed to himself that he would protect his mother at all costs and that he would be there for her all the time.

So here he was, twenty-six years old and still living with his mother and his two best friends. But that didn't mean that this was all his social life. Bucky and Sam always dragged him out at night so they could hang out after work and, hopefully, score with someone. More like, Bucky and Sam did all the scoring while Steve was just their wingman.

Steve met his girlfriend, Sharon Carter, at the bakery. She'd become a regular since moving to the neighborhood from Miami in order to pursue her career in fashion design. Steve knew she was ambitious the moment he laid eyes on her. The confident and beautiful blonde strode into the bakery and Steve was the one who greeted her and took her order.

He knew she was dangerous and he loved to play with fire. So he kept the small paper she slid across the cashier counter. It was her phone number.

He called her that night. (Yeah, he'd totally ignored Bucky's stupid rule that forbade calling a girl in the first three days after getting her number). She agreed to meet him the next day, telling him to bring her favorite chocolate muffin in a flirty voice. Bucky and Sam never saw this one coming. It was after Steve asked Sarah if he could take a day off and his friends didn't stop interrogating him that Steve told them that he was going to meet a girl at the coffee shop nearby.

"It's a date, isn't it?" Bucky asked.

"Tell us, pal. Who is she? Or he?"

"Dude…" Steve groaned. "Her name is Sharon and I think you guys met her at some point."

"What? When? I mean, if she's hot, I would totally remember her."

"No, you wouldn't."

"Come on! Just show us the picture!"

Steve shook his head before grabbing his jacket and hugging his mom, telling her that he might come home late she didn't have to wait up. Sam joked that Steve was planning to stay out all night with the girl. Steve didn't care and took his bike to meet Sharon at the coffee shop.

They hit it off easier and faster than both expected. They could say that the first date was a successful one because they both enjoyed each other's company. Steve called her that night, asking her out again on Saturday. She didn't hesitate to say yes.

It took them a month to become official, when Steve introduced Sharon to his family. Sam and Bucky were awestruck when they saw her. (Steve was sure that they remembered her, judging from their reaction. Bucky had probably even hit on her once or twice only to be shot down). They had dinner together and Steve was relieved that everyone welcomed her. Sharon felt at ease and blended in well. She even stayed the night at his place for the first time on the night that he introduced her to everyone.

Everything between him and Sharon went smoothly. Steve was the sweetest and most loving boyfriend someone could find and Sharon was the luckiest girl to have him. After dating for almost a year, Steve was serious about their relationship. He was planning on proposing to her on their one year anniversary. He had everything perfectly planned out.

But nothing lasts forever.

On the day before their anniversary, Steve came back to her apartment a bit early. He'd wanted to take her out for a nice dinner and probably a movie together afterwards. He opened the door to find scattered clothes all over the floor, leading him to her wide-open bedroom door. Sharon's moans came from their bed. She was not alone.

Rage took control of Steve. He bellowed and threw the guy who was having sex with his girlfriend across the room. Blood boiling inside his body, his heart beating so fast, he punched the guy until Sharon pulled him away from her secret lover.

They got into a huge argument and Sharon tried to convince him or to beg him to give her another chance. They ended it right away and Steve didn't ask to why she cheated on him. When he was about to leave, the guy got up and bashed his head with a bottle of wine. Steve stumbled against the wall, stunned but still conscious.

The neighbor who heard all the yelling and noises called the police and they both got hurled away to the nearest precinct. Sarah, Sam and Bucky came to bail him out. Sarah almost cried when she saw the bandage wrapped around her boy's head.

Steve told them what happened, knowing it would be hard for them to digest the terrible news. After that, Steve went on "shutting down" mode. Of course, the boys took him out to the bar in hopes that they would find someone who could help Steve forget the sorrow Sharon put him through.

"Bro, you are too nice for a girl like that, you know? There probably isn't a girl good enough for you in this town," Bucky said as Steve poured another pint of beer down.

"But we will find you someone that it equally nice to you as you are to her. Don't worry we will find you someone." Sam promised.

"Nah, I think I'm going to be out of the dating game for a while."

A while turned into three months, and then six before he was okay with Bucky and Sam setting him up with someone. From time through time, Steve still struggled with Sharon's daily appearances at the bakery. Her position was that she was a regular anyway and that she shouldn't change just because she'd broken up with the owner's son. Bucky and Sam were on the lookout for Steve and alerted him if they saw Sharon coming. Steve tried to stay at the back around the time she came to buy her things and it worked every time.

Steve went on a date and tried to get his social life back but Steve being so nice and everything and it scared girls away sometimes. Everyone said that he was too nice to be true and they were afraid that they might break his heart.

"James, he is too nice to be real." Lisa, the girl Bucky find for Steve, said. "I don't know. He's making me question myself. Am I being too selfish?"

"It's okay, Lisa."

"Tell him I'm sorry."

"I will."

Nah, I won't. Bucky thought. He will use that as an excuse to Steve out more often. When Steve complained about his relationship with girls was getting nowhere. Sam and Bucky said that it was his bachelor defensive system.

"That's not true." Steve countered. "I was just being nice to everyone. I don't have to act like a jerk or a bad boy because 'Girls addicted to bad boy'."

"Even I don't have an arm, I still score more girls than you." Bucky said.

"And you always hide at my place because of those girls you scored, hunting you down and tried to cut off certain parts of your body." The blonde shot back.

"Low blow, man."

"I guess I haven't found the right partner yet."

* * *

Steve was getting better as the time passed by until he forgot about the woman who hurt him. It took him year to finally let it all go. Some part was that Sharon didn't come here as much as she used to be.

He was finally able to move on with his life.

One day boring, quiet day turned into the moment that would change his life forever. The three boys were lounging behind counter in one morning when there was a call came in.

"Rogers Patisserie. What can we do for you today?"  
"Yes, I would like to order samples of everything you got in the menu including all of your specialty." A sweet sultry voice came from another end of the line. Steve's heart skipped a beat just by that intoxicating sound.  
"Of course." Steve replied, trying to keep his voice calm. "Do you have any preferences?"  
"Keep the ones with strawberry separates from ones with no strawberry." She said. "My friend is allergic to strawberry."  
"Yes, ma'am."  
"Send them to Stark Industries Tower, tell the front desk that you have a delivery for Natasha Romanoff."  
"Sure, we will deliver it in one hour."

They hang up and Steve noted everything down before he could pay attention to the little detail and planned for what to do next.

"Holy shit!" Steve shouted. "We just got an order from Stark Industries."  
"Shit!" Bucky and Sam yelled at the same time before they huddled around Steve to take a look for themselves.  
"Natasha Romanoff, huh?"  
"Is she someone important there?" Steve asked.  
"Let me googled her." Bucky said and before Steve could stop him, his friend was already had the laptop in his hands.

His curiosity peaked because they never got an order from someone in that building so Steve followed Sam and stood behind Bucky as the brunet did the research on their customers. But some part of him disagreed with what they were doing right now, invading someone's privacy.

"I don't think we should do that." Steve said. "We need to respect her privacy."  
"Bullshit!" Both Sam and Bucky yelled in unison.  
"Come on, guys."  
"Go stand in that corner." Bucky shushed him. "We will do the research."

Steve sighed and walked away to greet the customer who just came in. Bucky and Sam did find her Facebook account but they didn't get a chance to take a closer look because she set her profile page for only those who were her friends and the profile picture was her turning away from the camera.

"We got nothing." Bucky said. "Except that she is working in legal department for Stark Industries."  
"And that she's a redhead."  
"You will see her when you deliver these boxes."  
"Yeah, I should get going."

Bucky packed everything on his bike before he left to deliver the cake. He came back with a generous tip and he wouldn't shut up about how beautiful Natasha Romanoff was. Steve didn't listen to his friend and let Bucky went on and on about her.

"Anyway, she said that she loves the taste of our cake and she wants us to cater for the wedding."

"Wow...that can be a great gig."

"Yeah" Sam nodded in agreement.

"Did she say when will she dropping by?" Steve asked.

"Nah, she said she will contact us back. She needed to talk to her friends or something first."

"We can only hope then."

Friday came fast and Steve was frosting the birthday cake at the center counter (Specifically designed for showcasing his skill. It was Bucky's idea.) It was a quiet morning and the first and heaviest lot of early-morning customers just dispersed. Sam was now filling the empty baskets of breads while Bucky shelving the cakes and desserts.

The doorbell rang as a signal for the arriving customers. Steve looked up and saw the most beautiful human being he ever seen in his entire life. Steve stopped whatever he was doing and couldn't anything but stared at her, jaw dropping to the floor.

It was very hard to take his eyes off her, with her fiery red hair, and her was sure, even more fiery spirit. Bucky cleared his throat and brought Steve's conscious back. He gave her his bright smile and said,

"Welcome to Rogers Patisserie, ma'am."


End file.
